Technology Observatory / Emerging Technology Engineer

Peraton•Chantilly, VA

2d•$112,000 - $179,000•Onsite

About The Position

Peraton is seeking an Emerging Technology Engineer to evaluate, prototype, and recommend technologies that could improve enterprise platforms, cloud infrastructure, software delivery, data services, security, and mission capabilities. The role combines broad technical knowledge with hands-on engineering to assess emerging solutions against integration, security, performance, operational, and cost requirements. The engineer researches technologies from commercial, government-developed, and open-source sources; evaluates their technical fit, maturity, support, licensing, lifecycle risks, and operational implications; and prepares evidence-based recommendations. The role also develops small-scale prototypes and proof-of-concept implementations, validates solutions against representative interfaces and workloads, and documents findings such as performance, scalability, security implications, integration complexity, and limitations. The engineer supports technology roadmaps, architecture reviews, refresh initiatives, and replacement planning. They recommend whether technologies should be adopted, deferred, monitored, or rejected, and coordinate the transition of approved prototypes to production engineering teams. This position is fully onsite in Chantilly, Virginia. The listed target salary range is $112,000–$179,000; pay depends on factors including experience, education, skills, geographic location, and business and contract considerations. Employees may be eligible for overtime, shift differential, and a discretionary bonus, depending on the position.

Requirements

Active TS/SCI clearance with CI Polygraph.
Bachelor of Science or Bachelor of Arts degree and 6 years of experience; 9 years of experience may be considered in lieu of a degree.
Approximately 6–10 years of experience in software engineering, systems engineering, cloud or platform engineering, data engineering, infrastructure, or related technical disciplines.
Demonstrated ability to assess unfamiliar technologies and determine technical feasibility, integration requirements, and operational implications.
Hands-on experience developing prototypes, proof-of-concepts, software, infrastructure solutions, or system integrations.
Understanding of enterprise architecture, system interoperability, security requirements, and production operations.
Strong technical writing, analytical, and presentation skills, including the ability to communicate findings and recommendations to technical and nontechnical stakeholders.
Ability to distinguish experimental or demonstration capabilities from solutions suitable for production deployment.

Nice To Haves

Experience supporting classified enterprise platforms or Intelligence Community environments.
Familiarity with cloud-native architectures, containers, Kubernetes, and distributed systems.
Experience with geospatial systems, data platforms, or mission-oriented applications.
Familiarity with AI/ML infrastructure, model-serving platforms, or emerging AI technologies.
Experience evaluating commercial products, open-source projects, and vendor solutions.
Knowledge of DevSecOps, CI/CD pipelines, and automated software delivery environments.
Experience with technology lifecycle management, obsolescence assessments, or modernization planning.

Responsibilities

Monitor commercial, government-developed, open-source, and emerging technologies relevant to enterprise platforms, cloud infrastructure, DevSecOps, data services, observability, cybersecurity, and application hosting.
Evaluate technologies against technical requirements, architectural alignment, security, interoperability, operational impact, licensing, and cost.
Assess product maturity, vendor support, licensing changes, lifecycle status, and end-of-life risks.
Prepare technical assessments, comparative analyses, and evidence-based recommendations for engineering and architecture stakeholders.
Develop small-scale prototypes, proof-of-concept implementations, and integration demonstrations.
Test candidate solutions against representative system interfaces, workloads, and operational requirements.
Document performance, scalability, integration complexity, security implications, dependencies, limitations, and support requirements.
Collaborate with engineering teams to validate findings and avoid introducing unsupported prototype dependencies into production environments.
Recommend whether technologies should be adopted, deferred, monitored, or rejected using documented evaluation criteria and results.
Support technical roadmaps, architecture reviews, technology refresh initiatives, and replacement planning.
Coordinate the transition of approved prototypes and validated capabilities to production engineering teams.
Capture lessons learned and measurable outcomes to inform future technology decisions and continuous improvement.